{"id":4881,"date":"2019-10-14T14:30:17","date_gmt":"2019-10-14T21:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/arizona-family-law\/?p=4881"},"modified":"2022-12-13T10:15:17","modified_gmt":"2022-12-13T17:15:17","slug":"divorce-separate-bank-accounts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/arizona-family-law\/blog\/divorce-separate-bank-accounts\/","title":{"rendered":"Seperate Bank Accounts and Divorce in Arizona: What to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"
Divorce has shifted from a what-if scenario to when for many families across the United States. As the sanctity of marriage decreases and divorce rates are skyrocketing, many unsuspecting spouses are waking up in the morning and finding divorce papers sitting next to their morning coffee.<\/p>\n
The overall process of a divorce can be both psychologically and physically taxing as you will have many life altering decisions to make. These decisions are difficult, as they effect things such as where you will be sleeping, how much money you have, and how will you pay for your normal bills.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n When it comes to the splitting of assets during a divorce, most people have heard of the classic fifty-fifty<\/i> split of marital assets where all assets are added together and given a valuation which each spouse gets roughly half of.<\/p>\n The\u00a0fifty-fifty <\/i>split is legally known as the community\u00a0property <\/a>standard and is only used in a few states such as Arizona, California and Texas. In community property states, all property, assets and bank accounts that were purchased, created or used during the course of a marriage belong equally to both parties in a divorce.<\/p>\n In community property states, the easiest way to determine what is considered community property is to first figure out what is separate property. Separate or non-community property are assets purchased or accounts opened before the marriage began as well as any gifts or items inherited. Everything else will be community property.<\/p>\n Arizona is a community property state, so property will be split equally amongst the divorcing spouses. Some of the most important assets deemed to be community property are bank(checking\/savings) and retirement accounts<\/a>.<\/p>\n This designation is often confusing to some people, as their bank account most likely existed before the wedding began and accounts existing before the marriage are not considered to be community property.\u00a0Even though an account existed before the marriage began, all of the money in the account does not belong solely to the spouse whose name is on the account.<\/p>\n A court will view a bank account as a place where money has been added\u00a0to throughout the marriage and any money added to the account throughout the marriage is considered community property.<\/p>\n When it comes to dividing marital assets such as bank accounts, the name on the account is of little to no importance. The only time it is beneficial to have a separate account in your own name is if that account existed before the marriage and you are not planning on adding any additional funds to it or using it to pay for things.<\/p>\n If you come into a marriage with a separate bank account, that account will only be considered separate and not community property so long as it is not used by you or your spouse during your marriage. Should you decide to deposit funds into the account or use the money for something such as paying bills, a\u00a0judge will then consider the account to be commingled and will then classify the account as community property.<\/p>\n If you are in the early stages of a divorce and are looking to protect your assets, the most important way to protect your assets is to act quickly and hire a divorce lawyer<\/a> who will assist you in preparing any required documents as well as assisting you in determining what is needed protect your assets. In addition to this, the following steps will be useful:<\/p>\n Following these basic steps will prepare you for your meeting with your divorce attorney but more importantly they may also serve as evidence against your former spouse if they try to hide any money or assets from the court.<\/p>\n A. Even though the savings account is in your name, courts view savings accounts as community property and it will be split between you and your spouse in the divorce.<\/p>\n A. Separate bank accounts are marital property if they are considered to be commingled<\/i>. This means that if you or your spouse have depositing money into or used the funds from the account, it is considered to be commingled and must be equally split in a divorce.<\/p>\n A. If a separate bank account existed before a marriage began and money was neither added to it nor taken out of it, then it is considered separate property and it is not eligible to be split.<\/p>\n The process of going through a divorce and splitting marital assets is challenging and confusing if you do not have help, but you do not have to do it alone. Having an experienced family law attorney<\/a> on your side will ensure the process runs smoothly as well as the court awards you all that you deserve.<\/p>\nSplitting Bank Accounts in a Divorce<\/h2>\n
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Splitting Property in a Divorce<\/h2>\n
How Bank Accounts are Split in a Divorce<\/h2>\n
Separate Bank Accounts in a Marriage<\/h2>\n
How to Protect Assets in a Divorce<\/h2>\n
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FAQ about Bank Accounts and Divorce:<\/h2>\n
Q: Do I have to split my savings in a divorce?<\/h3>\n
Q: Are separate bank accounts marital property?<\/h3>\n
Q: What bank accounts aren\u2019t split in a divorce?<\/h3>\n
Receive Help with an Arizona Divorce with Separate Assets<\/h2>\n